15/03/2024
Part 1. Acupressure (Point Massage)
Today, we’d like to talk about acupressure (point massage) for mental health, which can be done with fingers or by working these points with the corners of the Body Tool during self-massage.
What's the difference between acupressure and acupuncture?
Acupressure is a point massage on specific areas of the body depending on needs, while acupuncture involves needle insertion, affecting reflex (nerve) points.
In historical records, acupressure is called tuina (translated as "point massage").¹
How does it work?
→ From the perspective of Chinese medicine, each person has certain meridians inside them. These are channels of energy through which life energy/force, called qi "chi," flows. By pressing on a specific point, you manage this energy and thereby work on solving various problems.
→ From the perspective of modern Western science, acupressure directly affects the nervous system. Pressing the body at the right points stimulates the release of two important chemical compounds: ³
1/ Nitric oxide, which helps to dilate blood vessels and increase oxygen content in the blood. Research shows that nitric oxide suppresses cortisol production and, therefore, helps regulate stress.⁴
2/ Endorphins, responsible for positive emotions.
Now that we know how it works, we can move on to the specific issue, namely acupressure for mental health and stress relief, which we will discuss in the next part.
¹ A. Al-Bedah I. Gazzaffi, A. Tamer, Tui Na (or Tuina) Massage: A Minireview of Pertinent Literature, 1970-2017, 2017.
² M. Tsuchiya, EF. Sato, A. Asada. Acupuncture enhances generation of nitric oxide and increases local circulation, 2007.
³ TR. Monau, VE. Vargas, L. Zhang, DA. Myers, CA. Ducsay, Nitric oxide inhibits ACTH-induced cortisol production in near-term, long-term hypoxic ovine fetal adrenocortical cells, 2010.
